Day Trip Guide to Isla Mujeres, Mexico

This is a day journey information to Isla Mujeres, a small caribbean island positioned off the coast of Cancun, Mexico.

The island was first found by the Mayans, and shortly turned a sanctuary devoted to the Mayan goddess of the moon, fertility, therapeutic and female forces, Ixchel. Because of the numerous feminine statues on the island, the Spaniards later named the island Isla Mujeres, that means the Island of Women.

Getting to Isla Mujeres from Cancun

To get to Isla Mujeres we advocate you are taking the UltraMar Ferry, as it’s fast, snug, and dependable. You can book your ferry ticket from Cancun to Isla Mujeres here.

Depending on the place you’re staying, you’ll be able to catch the ferry from 4 totally different areas in Cancun. Two of the most well-liked areas are:

1. From Downtown Cancun:

The ferry leaving from Puerto Juarez is the most affordable off all of the UltraMar Terminals as it’s positioned exterior the vacationer areas. To get to the ferry terminal you’ll be able to both take the R-1 bus in direction of Puerto Juarez for $9.50 pesos, or the shuttle vans that go away from “El Cruecero” for $7 pesos, each will go away you straight in entrance of the UltraMar port.

Round journey fare price: $146 pesos

Ferry Schedule: From 5am-8:30pm the ferry runs each 30mins after that it runs each hour till 11:30pm. The final ferry from Isla Mujeres leaves at 12am.

Time to get to Isla Mujeres: 18 minutes

2. From the Hotel Zone:

Conveniently sufficient, UltraMar has three ports within the lodge zone: El Embarcadero, Playa Tortugas and Playa Caracol. Any bus going to the Hotel Zone will take you straight to one in every of these ports for $9.50 pesos.

Round journey fare price: $19 USD

Ferry Schedule: Ferry schedule differs for every areas, nevertheless the primary ferry going to Isla Mujeres leaves at 9am and the final ferry from Isla Mujeres departs round 5pm.

Time to get to Isla Mujeres: 22-25mins

Inside Tip: We advocate that you simply discover a spot on the highest deck to benefit from the attractive view of the clear turquoise water. Sometimes in the course of the night hours, they even have dwell music, which makes the trip much more pleasing.

Once you get to Isla Mujeres, the ferry will go away you within the coronary heart of downtown and only a few kilometers stroll from Playa Norte (North Beach). We advocate you don’t go there first as a result of when you set your eyes on this piece of heaven, will probably be laborious for you to go away and discover the remainder of the island.

Getting Around on Isla Mujeres

Getting across the island is pretty simple as it’s only 5 miles lengthy and ½ mile huge. Though the island is walkable we advocate towards it because it will get actually scorching and may be very exhausting.

The hottest mode of transportation on the island are the Golf Carts which may be rented within the downtown space. The common value is round $50 USD for a complete day. If you solely need to hire a Golf Cart for a couple of hours the value ranges from $14-$16 USD per hour.

A extra funds friendlier means of getting round is by renting a Bicycle or Scooter. Both may be rented by the hour or for the whole day. Renting a motorcycle for the whole day is round $120 pesos and a scooter is round $250 pesos. We went with the bike possibility and rented two bikes for $200 pesos (acquired a deal right here). However, we later realized that we must always have gone with the scooter as an alternative as it will have been just about the identical value, and would have required much less effort from us.

The final choices are taxis. Taxis may be rented for the day, and can take you from sight to sight for a negotiated value.

Best Things to Do on Isla Mujeres

Turtle Farm (Tortugranja) was created to assist protect and defend the endangered sea turtles in Mexico. In Tortugranja, you’ll be able to see turtles in all of the totally different phases of their lives, contact totally different sea animals in addition to see some sharks. The admission charge per particular person is $30 pesos (~$3USD)

Punta Sur was one in every of our most favourite locations to go to on the island, second solely to Playa Norte in fact! The breathtaking pure attraction such because the panoramic cliff view and what we might name the “Iguana Resort” (we name it that as a result of there are such a lot of iguana’s round) is a should see. Punta Sur is on the southernmost tip of the island the place you could find a sculpture backyard, a light-weight home and the ruins of a temple devoted to the Goddess, Ixchel.

Playa Norte is positioned on the northern tip of the island and only a few minutes stroll from the Ultramar Ferry terminal. The seashore may be very fashionable and is loved by each locals and vacationers alike. The water is calm, clear, and is just wonderful. You would possibly even get the prospect to see some fishes. This seashore is the proper spot to watch the sundown on the island. We promise it’s one you’ll always remember.

Garrafon National Reef Park is positioned on the south finish of the island. The entrance charge provides you full entry to all their services in addition to life vests, internal tubes and kayaks. The park gives many actions reminiscent of zip-lining, snorkeling, kayaking and plenty of extra.

Underwater Museum has over 400 totally different underwater sculptures of life-size figures by Jason de Caires Taylor. The Museum is alleged to be a should see, and shouldn’t be missed. For a complete information in regards to the underwater museum click here.

Dolphin Discovery supplies you with the chance to swim with dolphins that carry out a wide range of totally different water actions.

Where to Eat on Isla Mujeres

There are loads of eating places to select from within the downtown space. If you need to eat genuine Mexican seafood we advocate you stroll on Rueda Medina, the road that runs alongside the seashore the place you’ll find numerous good eating places with respectable costs. There are additionally a couple of American, Chinese, and Italian eating places within the coronary heart of downtown. However, we don’t recommend going there until you need to pay virtually double the value to your meals.

If you quite eat with the locals you’ll be able to stroll just a little bit exterior of the touristy areas and discover random road meals distributors with tacos, empanadas, tamales, and extra.

Insider Tip: There is an superior seafood restaurant known as “Club Nautico” in Puerto Juarez, only a 5 minute stroll north from the Terminal. We went there earlier than heading to Isla Mujeres and ordered a kilo price of recent fish (sufficient for 3-4 individuals) that got here with rice, salad and tortillas for $150 pesos (~$12 USD). We had sufficient fish to take dwelling and eat for lunch the day after.

Isla Mujeres makes for an interesting day trip from Cancun, so when you have some free time you must undoubtedly go and discover the island for your self.